Introducing my.SketchUp: 3D for even more of everyone

Introducing my.SketchUp: a preview of SketchUp in a web browser. (Model by Riann Kotze)

tl;dr > SketchUp... in a web browser

This week at 3D Basecamp we launched a free preview of my.SketchUp, a version of SketchUp that runs in any modern web browser. Supported by Trimble Connect for storage, sharing and collaboration, “my.SketchUp” is the simplest and most ‘connected’ SketchUp modeler we’ve ever built. 3D for even more of everyone.

Who is this for? For those of you who are already using one of our SketchUp desktop applications, my.SketchUp is a great traveling companion. It gives you quick access to SketchUp and access to all your models from your client’s office or any of the billion or so computers connected to the Internet. If, on the other hand, you’re new to SketchUp or just messing around with it now and again, my.SketchUp gives you the latest version, up-to-date, and ready for you whenever you need it.

Sound interesting to you? Request an invite to our public beta and try it out for yourself.

What is my.SketchUp? Why my.SketchUp?

One of SketchUp’s greatest strengths is its accessibility. Pretty much anyone can sit down in front of SketchUp with little or no prior experience in 3D modeling and be up and away in a few minutes. A little experience with drawing helps, and it is always motivating to have a project in mind that you want to model… but SketchUp is about the easiest tool available today if you want to visualize your ideas in 3D.

Since the beginning, SketchUp has relied on the presence of a desktop computer running an operating system from either Microsoft (Windows) or Apple (Mac OS X). And while that has been a great platform for SketchUp for the last fifteen years, it just doesn’t cover today’s spectrum of computing platforms like it used to.

For the last ten years, we’ve seen the inexorable rise of the Internet as a full-fledged platform for development. In our time at Google, we learned a new way to think about computing -— cloud first, respecting the power and ubiquity of the browser. And the Internet has (finally) matured in the last few years to provide a platform for development to support something as technically complex as 3D modeling.

Today, I’m pleased to announce the next big thing for SketchUp. We’re extending it to the cloud, bringing a full 3D modeling tool to anyone with a modern web browser.

My.SketchUp is a full implementation of SketchUp. All the tools you know, working exactly the same way they do on the desktop. This isn’t a watered-down, partial implementation. It’s the full shebang, running in your web browser with no special plugins or extra stuff to download and install. Just good old SketchUp.

My.SketchUp is also something entirely new. Working together with Trimble Connect, it is the most connected and collaborative version of SketchUp we’ve ever shipped. Your models are automatically stored in the cloud, available from anywhere. You can easily share them with others, combine your models with others, and manage changing versions, clashes, and comments over time.

If you’re already using SketchUp on your desktop computer, this isn’t meant to be a replacement. my.SketchUp is 100% compatible with SketchUp on the desktop, and you’ll have no challenges moving your models back and forth. They are just plain vanilla “.skp” files. We’re committed to keeping that true forever.

All that said, we’re still working out some details, polishing up the UI, and tuning the performance. Our release today is a public beta and a preview of my.SketchUp. We’re not done with this thing yet. Here’s a my.SketchUp FAQ that will give you a clearer expectation as you get started.

Want to give it a try? Sign up for an invite at my.SketchUp.com. We’re scaling up availability gradually so that we’re sure everyone will get the same great level of service over the Internet, but we’ll be releasing new waves of invites every week. Sign up now to reserve your spot in the queue.

Have feedback? We would absolutely love to know what you think about this early version of my.SketchUp. Once you get your beta invite and start modeling, please chime in on the SketchUp Forum with your feedback and questions!